He is noted for activity to establish links between the far right in Britain and America, by founding the American Friends of the British National Party.
[1] He "helped promulgate the New Atlantic Charter, signed between the National Front and the Nationalist Movement, pledging Anglo-American solidarity" and was "instrumental in arranging the exchange visit of (Nick) Griffin to America".
[3][4] The Patriotic Forum was largely composed of fellow ex-NF members, such as Darren Copeland (as Chairman),[5] Keith Jowsey (as secretary),[6] and Alan Harvey.
[11] In 1994, he was attacked, receiving severe head injuries, by two members of Anti-Fascist Action who were subsequently "charged with unlawful wounding".
In 1998, when he lived just outside Washington, D.C., he formed and ran the American Friends of the British National Party (AFBNP), which raised funds for the BNP.
[21] On 21 September 2023, the Lancashire Evening Post detailed how Cotterill hired a conference room claiming it was for a meeting of military veterans (securing a discount) whereas in reality it was for his far right group Heritage and Destiny.